Nick Christofano, owner of Unique Ink Tattoo in Greensburg, tattoos Brian Svesnik of Belle Vernon during a fundraiser for Nick’s daughter Shelby, who has acute myeloid leukemia.
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By Margaret Smykla
Calista Coffman has 25 tattoos. Sunday, she found space for one more.
For ten hours, Nick Christofano, owner of Unique Ink Tattoo in Greensburg, opened his shop, which is typically closed on Sundays, for 45 to 50 friends, family and loyal customers to go under a tattoo artist’s needle for a $100 donation.
The event was held for Mr. Christofano’s daughter, Shelby Sisco, 15, who in February was diagnosed with leukemia.
Shelby returned home to Greensburg on July 9 from Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC after undergoing chemotherapy treatments.
Mr. Christofano said the roughly $4,500 to $5,000 raised Sunday was overwhelming.
“It’s very heartwarming to have the kind of support we have had for Shelby,” he said.
The funds will help defray the family’s expenses related to Shelby’s hospitalization, including tutoring: she missed half her freshman year.
Today, in remission and feeling fine, she looks forward to starting her sophomore year at Hempfield Area High School.
Five shop tattoo artists, including Johnny Fry and Zane Leibowitz, donated their talents for the day.
“It’s been awesome — people helping people,” Mr. Fry, 30, of Irwin said.
“Nick gave me the job of a lifetime. This is the least I can do to help out a very good friend,”said Mr. Leibowitz, 25, of Mt. Washington.
Five other tattoo shops nationwide, owned by friends of Mr. Christofano, will also hold fundraisers for Shelby this month.
“I appreciate all this help,”she said.
“It’s wonderful to see all the people willing to support Shelby and our family,” said Shelby’s mother, Joei Christofano.
For Katie Stobert, 30, it was her first trip to Unique Ink Tattoo, but not her first tattoo.
“I came for a good cause,” the Natrona Heights woman said, and left the shop with a tiger lily tattoo on her foot.
Also among those who got inked on Sunday was Don Christofano, 29, of Jeannette. He came for a skull tattoo on his leg and a whole lot more.
“I’m here to support my cousin in her fight with cancer,” he said.
Mrs. Coffman, 33, and her husband, D.J. Coffman, 36, of Scottdale, got matching tattoos.
Mrs. Coffman, who founded the Westmoreland Roller Derby League earlier this year, also recruited 13 girls from the league to take part in a bowl-a-thon fundraiser for Shelby that was held in April.
To donate, send a check payable to Shelby Sisco to Unique Ink Tattoo, 225 West Pittsburgh St., Greensburg, PA 15601.
(Editor’s note: Names have been changed and locations have been withheld to protect the minors in this story.)
SAN FRANCISCO — Thousands of children, many too young to drive, are hard at work putting in long hours in brutal conditions to make sure the rest of us eat well — and cheaply.
During weeks of investigation into the close-knit and tight-lipped community of migrant workers, NBC Bay Area found dozens of children working the fields in the San Joaquin and Sacramento valleys — some who started work at 11 , 10 and even 8 years of age. Advocates say the number nationwide may be as high as half a million.
While 8-year-old children can’t work in an office or a fast-food restaurant, a 1938 law allows them to legally work in agriculture.
“Children can work at any age on a small farm with their parents’ permission. It’s absolutely legal for a small farmer to hire a 6-year-old to pick blueberries,” said Zama Coursen-Neff of Human Rights Watch, who produced a 2010 report that found child labor prevalent in fields across the U.S.
Critics of U.S. labor law say it’s a relentless cycle: Young workers drop out of school to follow their families and the crops for work. They work a full day in the fields picking, trimming and cultivating fresh fruits and vegetables. They often work nine to 10 hours a day in 100 degree-plus heat.
Then they remain stuck in the fields because they never finish high school.
A typical day in one Central Valley migrant labor camp starts at 4:30 a.m.
Among those workers is a 15-year-old boy, “Ralph,” who joins dozens of other young people heading to work. Some of them were told by direct supervisors to lie about their ages to get past the bosses in order to work.
“We get kind of tired, and our arms hurt,” said Ralph, who said he’s in his second year working full time in the fields. “It is too hard to be in the fields.”
U.S. labor law, which dates to 1938, allows children 12 years old — and depending on the circumstances, even younger — to legally work in agriculture.
There are many other children like Ralph.
“Like seven years, since I was 8 years old until now,” one 15-year-old said, describing when he started in the fields.
Another of the young workers said, “I was in sixth grade. I was 11.”
Yet another young girl described working so hard when she was 11 that her fingers bled.
“I had to carry a box, and I had cuts on my fingers,” she said. “I came out really tired. It was really hot, and I didn’t really like it, but it was worth it to go help my mom.”
Certain crops are harder to pick for the children than others.
“Well, right now it’s tomatoes,” a teenager said. “It’s the hardest thing I’ve done. I have to (work hard), bending over, standing up, carrying the buckets and throwing them.”
Because of the hard work and long hours, some parents are trying to keep their kids away from the fields, even though their families need the money.
The mother of one young girl forces her to stay in school away from the fields.
“She says because it’s a lot of work,” said the girl, whom NBC News is calling Carmen. “She doesn’t want me to go through what she goes through (in the fields). She says it’s really painful, hard work. Every night I massage her back so that she can feel better in the morning.”
Carmen vowed to go to college and get a higher-paying job so she can support her mother and get her out of the fields.
“I told her that when I get older I’m going to buy her a house and stop her from working,” Carmen said.
Carmen isn’t alone in her dreams. All of the children interviewed for this report said they hoped the money they earned would help them break out of the cycle and live a better life.
“Right now, I want to be an artist, like drawing,” one teenager said.
Coursen-Neff of Human Rights Watch stressed that as unfortunate as it may seem, those long hours in the fields are perfectly legal.
“You have to realize that many children who are working in hazardous conditions in the United States are working absolutely legally because U.S. child labor law — which is pretty good — has a big gaping hole in it when it comes to agriculture,” Coursen-Neff said.
“Children are working in American fields at far younger ages for far longer hours and in far more hazardous conditions than all other working children in America,” Coursen-Neff said.
“A child can work again for hire at age 12 on any size farm. And at age 14, they can work for hire even without their parents’ permission,” she said.
In other words, “a child of any age can work unlimited hours outside of school in agriculture even though, in all other forms of work, the number of hours that they can work is limited to make sure that they can get an education and to make sure that they’re not put at risk.”
Coursen-Neff said her research shows that low wages for migrant workers throughout the industry means those families need more workers in the field to make ends meet. It becomes an economic necessity that continues for generations.
“These kids know that there is a necessity in their family to be able to make ends meet, to be able to put food on the table, and are out there in those fields trying to make that happen,” said Norma Flores Lopez, director of the AFOP’s Children in the Fields Campaign.
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 created two separate classes of rules, Flores Lopez said:” There is a set of rules that covers children working in every other industry, and then there is a separate set of rules for kids working in agriculture.”
It’s hard to pin down how many children are out there, because there isn’t a lot of data, Flores Lopez said, “but from our best estimates that we have been able to get, we know that there is anywhere from 400,000 children to up to as many as 500,000 kids.”
Those kids, picking everything from grapes to almonds, all said they are laboring so long and so hard out of pure economics. The reality is that their parents simply can’t make enough money working the fields without their children’s help.
One 15-year-old worker’s mother put it plainly.
“With just my husband’s salary, it’s not enough,” she said in Spanish, speaking through an interpreter. “The two of them need to work in order to have anything and to keep up,”
The U.S. Labor Department tried to change the law this year to further restrict and even prohibit some children from working in fields, but it met opposition from growers.
“What they were proposing was a little too strong, a little too restrictive,” said Pete Aiello, a second-generation grower in Gilroy, Calif.
“The current regulations as they are, I think, are good. I think they are sound. I think it’s OK for kids that young to be working. (It depends) now on how many hours that they work.”
Aiello and his family have owned and run Uesugi Farms Inc. for decades, growing chilies, pumpkins, Napa cabbage and other vegetables.
Uesugi employs 180 people on its direct payroll and 500 to 600 seasonal contract workers, mostly during the harvest season.
After other critics lodged similar complaints in Washington, the Labor Department withdrew the proposed rules in April. Critics also said the rules as drawn up by the Labor Department would have hurt family farms, although department officials dispute that.
Aiello acknowledged that some fellow growers look the other way and employ children who are 12 and younger.
“I know it does happen,” Aiello said. “And that’s unfortunate.”
On July 24, the House passed a bill to prevent the Labor Department from trying to change the labor law regarding children in agriculture in the near future. Backers said the proposed Labor rules would hurt have family farms and 4-H clubs.
Only one representative, Lynn Woolsey, a Democrat from Sonoma and Marin counties in California, spoke out against the legislation. Similar legislation has been proposed and awaits action in the Senate.
What most sides can agree on is that this issue is largely unknown.
“I think Americans are largely clueless about the labor in general that supplies their food,” Aeillo said. “And whether it’s their age or their ethnicity or their legal status or any of the above, I think Americans are in the dark about what’s going on.”
NBC Bay Area sought comment from a dozen other large grower organizations, like the California Farm Bureau Federation and California Citrus Producers, as well as large food processors and producers. All declined to comment or didn’t return messages.
NBC Bay Area also asked U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis for an interview. Her staff declined.
At least seven people were killed, including one shooter, just after 10 a.m. Sunday at the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, police said.
Four of the dead were inside the temple at 7512 S. Howell Ave. and three of the dead, including a shooter, were outside the temple.
A police SWAT team entered the building before noon and brought uninjured people out of the building, 7512 S. Howell Ave.
They started removing injured people from the temple’s prayer room.
SWAT team members were still sweeping the building about 1 p.m. and an explosion was heard from the building at that time. It was unclear what the explosion was.
About six gunshots were heard at 2:30 p.m. in the area. The shots appeared to be coming from the temple.
The first officer on the scene Sunday morning encountered an active shooter and exchanged fire with him, according to Greenfield Police Chief Bradley Wentlandt who briefed media on the scene.
The shooter went down and is believed to be dead, said Wentlandt. He said authorities had no evidence of a second shooter.
Wentlandt said the officer was hit multiple times, but is expected to survive. He said the officer was a 20-year veteran and “an extremely accomplished tactical officer.” He was taken to Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa where he was in surgery just before 2 p.m.
White House officials said President Barack Obama was notified of the shootings shortly before 1 p.m. by John Brennan, his Homeland Security adviser. The president continues to receive updates.
Temple president among those shot
Among those who were shot was the president of the temple, Satwant Kaleka, who was taken to Froedtert Hospital.
Gurmit Kaleka, a nephew of Satwant Kaleka, was at the hospital and said he was in surgery. He said Satwant is 65 years old. He is married with two grown sons. One is a former MPD officer. Satwant Kaleka has been president of the church since about 1996. He has never felt threatened or unsafe in any way, Gurmit Kaleka said.
Deepinder Dhaliwal said Satwant Kaleka, his brother in law, was shot in the back.
Dhaliwal said his sister, the president’s wife, called him while hiding inside the building with a few other women.
Darshan Dhaliwal, who identified himself as a leader at the temple, said between 20 and 25 women who were cooking a lunch in the basement for after the service and between five to 10 children had been able to leave the temple at about 1 p.m. Dhaliwal said they heard the gunshots and hid in closets for more than an hour before escaping. Dhaliwal said the temple had not been the subject of any threats or graffiti recently.
“This is insanity,” he said.
Jim Haase, a retired firefighter lives on Manitoba Court near the temple. He said that he tended to the wounds of a high priest. He said he heard gunfire and his dog, Paris, “was just going nuts.”
“I tended to his wounds,” he said. “He was shot right through the side”
“I called the emergency number but I couldn’t get through, so I called the non-emergency number of Oak Creek Fire Department and got their med unit to come over.”
Haase said the priest was in shock, but conscious.
“I laid him down,” he said. “I was with him for about 10 minutes. I tended to his wounds, then they took him away.”
Dick Katschke, a spokesman for the Medical College of Wisconsin, said three adult males were being treated at Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa. One of the three was undergoing surgery in the intensive care ward. Another is in an operating room. And the third is being treated in the emergency room, Katschke said.
All three were being treated for gunshot wounds. All are in critical condition, according to Froedtert.
Shooting came as many arrived for 11:30 a.m. service
People were in the temple as early as 6:30 a.m. Sunday and many more were arriving for a service that was to begin about 11:30 a.m.
There were reports that children were taken away from the area of the building where the shooting took place after shots were fired.
Someone who sent a text message to a Journal Sentinel reporter shortly before noon said that there were two shooters with children possibly as hostages.
And the head priest was locked inside a restroom with a cell phone and that there were as many as 20 to 30 victims.
One of the temple’s committee members, Ven Boba Ri, said that based on communication with people inside the temple, the shooter was a white male in his 30s.
“We have no idea,” he said of the motive. “It’s pretty much a hate crime. It’s not an insider.”
According to Ri, the man started shooting after he walked up to a priest who was standing outside, and shot him.
Then he went inside and started shooting.
People inside the temple were using cell phones to call people outside, saying please send help, Ri said.
“It’s sad, I don’t know how to describe it,” said Ri, who has been fielding calls all morning from around the world, including India.
“Sikhism is such a peaceful religion. We have suffered for generations, in India and even here.”
“We’re all the same,” said temple member Jaswinder Schandock. “Everybody has the same blood.”
Groups of temple members were gathered, on cell phones, conferring in small groups and watching from afar. A member of the Sikh Temple in Brookfield said three of those who were killed are priests. Authorities have not identified any of those who died.
Numerous police agencies had responded to scene to assist Oak Creek, including the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
At least two dozen ambulances responded, including from Oak Creek, Caledonia, North Shore Fire, Greenfield and West Allis. Those ambulances had moved to the temple about 12:40 p.m.
As of about 3:45 p.m., the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office said it had not been called to the scene.
The Joint Terrorism Task Force, a collection of federal, state and local law enforcement, was on the scene of the shooting by 1 p.m. Those task forces, several of which are situated around the country, typically work quietly to prevent terrorism attacks but also respond to mass shootings to help coordinate law enforcement. Sources said it was too early to say if this will be considered an act of terrorism.
U.S. Attorney James Santelle said he expected federal law enforcement will play a role in the investigation. Exactly what that role is remains to be seen, Santelle said.
“I am clearly anticipating that there will be federal investigative support,” Santelle said.
The FBI and U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives both confirmed that their agents were on the scene of shooting and assisting local law enforcement. The agencies declined comment, saying Oak Creek police are the primary point of contact. The ATF did say that the gun or guns used in the shooting will be traced to the original seller.
The Wisconsin Department of Justice also was said to be sending agents to assist in the investigation.
Police dispatched to Brookfield temple as precaution
Meanwhile, Brookfield police officers were dispatched to the Sikh Temple at 3675 N. Calhoun Road as a precaution in the aftermath of the Oak Creek shooting.
At least three squads were at the temple in Waukesha County and they blocked off roads leading to the building.
About 50 people were at the Brookfield temple for a morning service and many of them went outside after they learned of the shooting in Oak Creek.
Gurcharan Grewal, president of the Sikh Religious Society of Wisconsin told a Journal Sentinel reporter: “People are really shocked. There was a little bit of panic. But everything is holding together.”
He said U.S. Senate candidate Tommy Thompson was at the Brookfield location to address the congregation when the news of the shooting from Oak Creek came in.
Grewal said he has heard no theories on the shooter’s motivation.
“Nobody knows,” he said. “There was no indication, no warning, nothing. I think it was just some isolated hate crime or something. “
Grewal said he thought 40 or 50 people were in the temple, not the 400 or so who might have been present after 11:30 a.m.
Among those shot, he said, were two priests. He did not know their conditions.
He spoke with another priest, Gurmail Singh, who was locked in a closet, and was not injured.
More than 20 million people worldwide follow the Sikh religion, established about 500 years ago in the Punjab region of India. Devout male followers must wear long beards and their hair in a turban, and in America are sometimes mistaken for Muslims; the two religions are not affiliated.
In the days after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, at least four acts of violence against Sikhs occurred in the Milwaukee area, , said Swarnjit S. Arora, a founder of the local Sikh Religious Society said in 2002. Two taxis owned by Sikh drivers were vandalized, and two Sikh men were assaulted, said Arora. The crimes were not widely reported by the news media because they were overshadowed by dramatic events across the nation, he said.
About 3,000 Sikh families live in southeastern Wisconsin. A tight-knit community, they meet for religious services and to share meals at the Religious Society in Brookfield and the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, in Oak Creek, which opened in 2007. .
The Oak Creek scene was similar to the situation in 2005, when a gunman killed seven people and himself at a church meeting in a Brookfield hotel.
Terry Ratzmann, 44, opened fire March 12, 2005, during a worship service of the Living Church of God at the Sheraton hotel in Brookfield.
Journal Sentinel staff writers Tom Daykin, John Diedrich, Bruce Vielmetti, Don Walker, James B. Nelson, Georgia Pabst, Paul Gores, Raquel Rutledge and Craig Nickels contributed to this report.
Fruit flies can give clues to what happens in other species
Scientists believe they have discovered a clue to why women tend to live longer than men – by studying fruit flies.
Writing in Current Biology, they focus on mutations in mitochondrial DNA – the power source of cells.
Mitochondria are inherited only from mothers, never from fathers, so there is no way to weed out mutations that damage a male’s prospects.
But one aging expert said there were many factors that explained the gender difference in life expectancy.
By the age of 85, there are approximately six women for every four men in the UK, and by 100 the ratio is more than two to one.
And females outlive males in many other species.
‘No effect’ on females
In the research, experts from Australia’s Monash University and the UK’s Lancaster University analyzed the mitochondria of 13 different groups of male and female fruit flies.
Mitochondria, which exist in almost all animal cells, convert food into the energy that powers the body.
I certainly don’t think this is a discovery that explains why women live five-to-six years longer than men”
Prof Tom Kirkwood, Newcastle University
Dr Damian Dowling, of Monash University who was one of the researchers, said the results point to numerous mutations within mitochondrial DNA that affect how long males live, and the speed at which they age.
“Intriguingly, these same mutations have no effects on patterns of aging in females,” he said.
“All animals possess mitochondria, and the tendency for females to outlive males is common to many different species.
“Our results therefore suggest that the mitochondrial mutations we have uncovered will generally cause faster male aging across the animal kingdom.”
They suggest this is because there is no evolutionary reason for the faults that affect males to be picked up – because mitochondria are passed down by females.
Dr Dowling added: “If a mitochondrial mutation occurs that harms fathers, but has no effect on mothers, this mutation will slip through the gaze of natural selection, unnoticed.
“Over thousands of generations, many such mutations have accumulated that harm only males, while leaving females unscathed.”
Tom Kirkwood, professor of ageing at Newcastle University said the paper was “intriguing”.
He said: “It may be it does tell us something rather important about mitochondria and the difference between male and female fruit flies.
“And we know that mitochondria are important for aging in a number of species.
“But I certainly don’t think this is a discovery that explains why women live five-to-six years longer than men.
“There are other things we know also count – lifestyle, social and behavioral factors. But the biggest difference in biology is that we have different hormones.”
The number of people taken to hospitals by ambulance due to heatstroke in the week through Sunday more than doubled from the preceding week to 5,467, preliminary data showed Tuesday. The figure, up from 2,622 in the week to July 15, hit the highest for a single week this summer, according to the data released by the Fire and Disaster Management Agency. Deaths caused by heatstroke increased to 13 from five in the preceding week. Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture had the most victims, with ambulances called for 388 people each. They were followed by 382 in Aichi Prefecture and 372 in Osaka Prefecture. People aged 65 or older accounted for 45.9 percent of the total. Since the agency started this year’s survey on May 28, 11,116 people were taken to hospitals as of Sunday. Twenty-three people have died. The rise in heatstroke cases reflects the smothering heat wave, with temperatures of 35 degrees or higher observed in many places for the four days from July 16, agency officials said. In Tatebayashi, Gunma Prefecture, the mercury shot up to 37.6 on July 16 and to 39.2 the following day, according to the Meteorological Agency.
Ten people were killed and 38 others went missing as incessant rains battered Uttarakhand today triggering landslides, cloud bursts and flash floods which flattened homes and stranded hundreds of pilgrims with the Chardham Yatra coming to a grinding halt. The Garhwal region bore the brunt of the natural calamity. The state government has sounded a high alert after the MET department’s warned of very heavy rains and sought the help of the army to mitigate the sufferings of the people. Nineteen labourers of the state-run UJVN Ltd’s Assi Ganga hydel project went missing following a cloud burst in the upper hills of Uttarkashi district. Similarly, 19 other people also went missing from Gangori, Dunda, Uttarkashi town and Barkot areas in the district. “We have launched a manhunt to trace the missing people,” said R Rajesh Kumar District Magistrate Uttarkashi. Elsewhere in the state, 10 people were killed in different incidents following heavy rains during the past 24 hours, said sources in the Disaster Management and Mitigation Centre (DMMC) here.
In the disaster-prone Uttarkashi district, flash floods hit several low-lying areas creating havoc there. At least three jawans of the fire brigade department and two others were killed at Gangori area even as Chardham yatra to Gangotri and Yamunotri remained suspended for the second day today. In Gangori area of Uttarkashi, Bhagirathi is flowing above the danger level with people being evacuated to safer areas. Nearly 30 homes were washed away in the floods with the Gangori bridge also collapsing. “We have now reports that three jawans of the fire brigade and two others were killed in Gangori,” said state disaster management minister Yashpal Arya. Two more people were killed in Dunda area of Uttarkashi district. While two children were killed in a house collapse at Kararnprayag area of Chamoli district early today, another child was washed away in flash floods at Pokhri area of the district where landslides continue to hit blocking highways leading to Badrinath.
Hundreds of Badrinath pilgrims were stranded at various places at Patalganga, Lambagar and Birahi due to fresh landslips. The yatra for Kedarnath shrine was also suspended, the sources said. The government has launched relief and rescue operations but heavy rains were hampering them, top officials said. Food packets are being sent to the affected people. Nearly 250 families have already been taken to safer areas in different areas of Uttarkashi and Chamoli districts. Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna was monitoring the situation and has asked the concerned authorities to launch rescue and relief operation in the disaster-hit areas. He also asked concerned officers to reopen roads leading to pilgrim shrines so that the stranded pilgrims can go home. Bahuguna also asked the special Chardham cell set up at the secretariat to send him a daily report regarding the situation in the Garhwal region. The CM said his government would provide food and other essential items to the stranded pilgrims. Landslides are common in fragile hills of Garhwal region.
Serious sandstorm hit the entire country Friday with the wind speed measuring about 90km/hr and visibility falling below 500m. According to Director of Weather Forecast Mohammed Karam, the weather is the outcome of winds blowing from the East and high altitude concentration on the North Arabian Peninsula that closes the atmospheric pressure lines. Karam anticipates the weather will be stable by Saturday. He also said the northwesterly wind will continue in moderate speed measuring 40 km/hr and later transform to moderate light northeasterly winds measuring 25-40km/hr until the end of the week, and then the weather will become stable. He urged elderly people and those suffering from allergies and breathing difficulty to be extra cautious and wear masks while reducing their outings to avoid complications. Meanwhile, the Director of Operations at Kuwait International Airport Essam Al-Zamen disclosed that aviation events are continuing as expected, indicating the bad weather has no effect on activities there. He reiterated that landing and departure of planes take place as scheduled, even though the visibility is about 400m.
Firefighters in Russia’s Siberia had extinguished 45 forest fires covering 522 hectares of forest in the past 24 hours, but 131 wildfires were still burning on the area of almost 15,000 hectares, the regional forestry department said Friday. A total of 29 wildfires covering an area of more than 5,000 hectares were localized, and 14,948 hectares of forest continued to burn in the Krasnoyarsk Krai, Tomsk Region, Tuva, Khakassia and Irkutsk Region. Some 3,000 people, 412 units of fire-fighting equipment and 24 aircrafts have been mobilized to fight the blazes, which are believed to be caused by hot and dry weather in the region where the temperature reaches 35 degrees. Reports said the wildfires posed no threat to populated areas or industry.
A wildfire whipped by gusty, southerly winds swept through rural woodlands north and south of Oklahoma City on Friday, burning several homes as firefighters struggled to contain it in 113-degree heat. Oklahoma’s emergency management officials said 25 structures had burned east of Noble, including a handful of homes, and several homes near Luther, north of Oklahoma City, were threatened. Hundreds of residents were told to leave their homes as flames spread through treetops. The state Highway Patrol closed part of the main highway between Oklahoma City and Tulsa because of the Luther-area fire, which may have been deliberately set. Local deputies were looking into reports about passengers in a pickup truck who were seen throwing out newspapers that had been set on fire. “I loaded the kids up, grabbed my dogs, and it didn’t even look like I had time to load the livestock, so I just got out of there,” said Bo Ireland, who lives a few miles from where the Noble-area fire started. “It looked to me that, if the wind shifted even a little bit, I would be in the path of that fire. It was just too close.” There were no immediate reports of injuries or livestock losses. Dayle Bishop stood in a convenience store parking lot about 2 miles away from his house, saying he was pessimistic about his home’s chances. “I know it’s gone,” said Bishop, who works nights as a nurse. “Didn’t even have time to get anything out.” But he noted “it’s just stuff,” and said he may not have made it out of his home had a woman not knocked on his door and woken him up.
Charles Wright was with his daughter, Christina, along with their cat, at a makeshift evacuation center doubling as a staging area for fire engines, ambulances and other emergency equipment. He said law enforcement ordered them to leave their home in Norman. “Praying for miracles. Praying for the best, that’s all we can do,” said Wright, who managed to pack some clothes, jewelry and legal papers before fleeing. Ruth Hood splashed water onto two Chihuahua puppies that she grabbed along with several other animals and her children, and left as flames burned in her neighbor’s yard. She said she couldn’t be sure her home would survive. “No guarantee,” Hood said. With the ongoing drought, high temperatures and gusty winds, it took little for fires to begin and spread — and there was little crews could do to fight them. “It’s difficult for the firefighters to get into the area because it’s heavily wooded on either side of the smaller roads. When the winds are blowing 25 mph it just blows the embers and fireballs across the roads as if they weren’t even there,” said Jerry Lojka with the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management. At mid-afternoon Friday, the temperature at nearby Norman was 113. Winds were from the south and southwest at 14 mph, gusting to 24 mph. “I can tell you the temperatures and the wind are not helping the situation at all. Some homes have been lost in the fire unfortunately, but we don’t know how many,” said Meghan McCormick, a spokeswoman for the Cleveland County Sheriff’s office.
Russell Moore, 53, who lives in the Noble area, said he was outside in his yard when a sheriff’s deputy drove down the road and told people to leave. He and his son went to a shelter set up at Noble City Hall, but planned to go to his daughter’s home in Norman. “About all we saw was smoke and a little bit of ash raining down from the sky,” Moore said. “Everybody was piling into their vehicles and leaving as we were.” Lojka said an Oklahoma National Guard helicopter has been dispatched to a fast-moving blaze in Luther, northeast of Oklahoma City. He also said helicopters were helping ground crews with a fire near Mannford and Drumright in Creek County. Helicopters from the National Guard and the Bureau of Indian Affairs were fighting a fire in Creek County. The Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office said it was investigating reports that someone in a black pickup truck near Luther was tossing out newspapers that had been set on fire. The blaze and smoke led the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to shut down part of the Turner Turnpike, which carries Interstate 44 between Oklahoma City and Tulsa. Traffic was rerouted onto old U.S. Route 66, the famed two-lane highway that crisscrosses Oklahoma. The state was monitoring 11 fires in all Friday afternoon. Gov. Mary Fallin announced a statewide burn ban as the fire danger heightened. She previously had announced a state of emergency for all 77 counties due to the extreme drought.
As a wildfire’s flames raced to the edge of Lame Deer’s town limits, police drove the streets with loudspeakers blaring orders for residents of the Northern Cheyenne Reservation community to grab their most important belongings and get out. Buses were waiting to carry people from danger area, which on Thursday night suddenly meant the entire town of 2,000. Desi Small-Rodriguez, a volunteer with the tribe’s disaster and emergency services department, recalled the chaotic scene as the Chalky Fire threatened to burn down the seat of the southeastern Montana reservation. “A lot of people were walking with their belongings, getting on buses, trying to find rides, getting out as told,” Small-Rodriguez said Friday. About 250 people stayed at a Red Cross shelter 25 miles away at the St. Labre Mission. Others took shelter with friends and relatives on other parts of the reservation. Those with no place to go camped out on lawns in nearby communities, or they just refused to leave. The fire had already burned two homes earlier in the day, then wind from a cold front whipped up the flames and drove the fire straight toward town. Things looked grim to Carol Raymond, Rosebud County’s head of disaster and emergency services, who had driven from Forsyth to see firsthand what was happening. “I figured the whole town of Lame Deer would go up in flames,” Raymond said. Firefighters worked overnight trying to keep the flames back. At one point early Friday, the fire jumped Highway 212, but firefighters contained it with a back burn of the surrounding area, and the wildfire skirted around town without destroying any buildings or causing any injuries, Small-Rodriguez said. On Friday, the smoke was choking the town, but rain was assisting firefighters. A red-flag warning was to be in effect until evening, and firefighters prepared for gusty winds and possible thunderstorms. The mandatory evacuation remained in effect.
The state is sending firefighters and managers to help battle a 1,000-acre wildfire in the southeast corner of Washington. Other firefighters also are trying to contain a 10,000-acre wildfire in central Washington. The new fire broke out Thursday afternoon five miles south of Asotin and is burning grass, brush and wheat. The state Emergency Operations Center at Camp Murray has been activated to coordinate state assistance. Overnight winds forced firefighters to retreat at the central Washington fire as it grew to 10,000 acres – more than 15 square miles. Spokesman Dan Garner at the incident management center at Brewster High School says no structures are threatened. The fire broke out Wednesday near Pateros and Brewster. It’s burning grass, brush, scattered timber and some wheat land.
OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) – Wildfires burned out of control on Friday in Oklahoma, destroying homes and shutting down highways in a state that has suffered 18 straight days of 100-plus degree temperatures and persistent drought.Emergency officials counted 11 different wildfires around the state, with at least 65 homes destroyed in parched areas north and south of Oklahoma City and south of Tulsa.
Oklahoma joins several states that have been plagued by wildfires this summer, including Colorado, Arkansas and Nebraska. Fires are being fed by a widespread drought.
Nearly two-thirds of the contiguous United States was under some level of drought as of July 31, according to the Drought Monitor, a weekly report compiled by U.S. climate experts.
Interstate 44, historic Route 66 and state highways were closed, but no deaths were reported in the Oklahoma fires.
Low humidity, strong southerly winds and drought conditions enabled the wildfires to spread quickly across treetops, said Michelann Ooten, deputy director of the state’s Office of Emergency Management.
“It’s just a very difficult situation we’re facing that’s all weather related,” Ooten said.
Governor Mary Fallin, who earlier in the day invoked a statewide ban on outdoor burning after declaring a state of emergency for the state’s 77 counties, told Reuters fire conditions may be worse on Saturday.
“The fire danger might be even higher,” she said.
Oklahoma has contacted neighboring states for help, but they are contending with their own wildfire threats and no out-of-state help is on its way, she said.
“There’s fires in Arkansas. There’s fires in Kansas and Texas. Everybody else is on high heat alert,” she said.
The heat in Oklahoma City, the state capital, has reached historic levels.
On Friday, Oklahoma City tied its all-time record for the highest temperature ever recorded when the thermometer reached 113 Fahrenheit (45 Celsius), a mark last recorded in the Dust Bowl days in 1936, according to the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma.
Volunteer fire departments have made a public plea for Gatorade donations to keep their crews hydrated in the scalding conditions.
(Reporting by Steve Olafson; Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Lisa Shumaker)
After a lull in the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season, Tropical Storm Florence formed on Saturday, joining Ernesto as both moved west on paths that could eventually take them to the U.S. coast.
It was still in the deep Atlantic, but on a path towards the Caribbean.
Ernesto was packing sustained winds of 50 mph and should pass south of Jamaica on Sunday, the center stated. “Ernesto is forecast to become a hurricane … in a day or two,” it added.
After Jamaica, which issued a tropical storm warning, Ernesto will likely head toward Grand Cayman, arriving Monday, and then Cancun/Cozumel in Mexico on Wednesday, weather.com reported.
Weather.com added it was “unclear whether Ernesto poses a threat to the U.S. late next week.”
On Friday, the storm swept over the tiny island of St. Lucia.
Businesses and government offices were ordered closed until noon on St. Lucia as Ernesto passed over the island, churning up 12-foot waves a few miles off its north shore.
It moved so quickly that St. Lucia got less than an inch of rain and there were no reports of damage or injuries.
August and September are usually the most active months of the Atlantic-Caribbean hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30.
Prior to Ernesto forming on Thursday, the last Atlantic tropical storm was Debby more than a month ago. It drenched Florida and eight deaths were tied to the storm.
U.S. government forecasters in May predicted a “normal” 2012 season, saying 9-15 named storms could be expected. Between 4-8 of those were predicted to become hurricanes.
Continuous heavy rainfall, cloud burst, and landslides have killed 10 in various parts of Sub-Himalayan region of Uttarakhand. At least 53 persons have been reported missing so far in flash floods and swallon rivers.
The pilgrims of the Chardham were stranded in the midway at various places and government has implemented temporary closure on the annual Char Dham pilgrimage until the situation becomes under control, official said on Saturday.
Due to heavy rains, the rivers have swollen and land sliding have increasing causing havoc among the localities and pilgrims. The pilgrims were stranded on way to Gangotri, Yamunotri, Badrinath and Kedarnath – the four points of pilgrimage.
According to official report, three fire fighters were killed in Gangotri due to heavy rains. A bridge was also washed away here and over 40 houses submerged in the overflowing Bhagirathi river.
Garhwal was the worst hit area, report said.
Two deaths were reported from Chamoli after two children died in a roof collpase. A child was swept away in Pokhri.
Uttarkashi has also been hit by flash floods.
Officials said following warnings of “more and severe rains” in the next two days, the Disaster Management and Mitigation Centre is on high alert and Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna was monitoring the situation.
Water level of Bhagirathi and Ganga rivers is also on the rise. The Uttarakhand government has issued red alert in areas along the river Ganga.
As many as 22 people were on Friday trapped in flash floods in Jammu region, prompting the authorities to sound an alert in the region. “A flash flood alert has been sounded in Jammu. Due to heavy overnight rains, various rivers in Jammu region are flooded…22 people and large number of cattle are trapped in the flash floods in Ujh and Tawi rivers,” an official said. Of the 22 people, 15 are trapped in Ujh river at Khadwal area in Kathua district and two each in Mayachak, Nagri, Sujanal (Satwari) and Muthi areas, he said. A rescue operation has been launched for those trapped in the flash floods, triggered by intermittent overnight rains in Jammu, Kathua and Udhampur districts, the official said. The water level in Chenab, Tawi, Ujh and Basantar rivers are nearing the danger mark, officials said, adding that people living in low-lying areas have been alerted and warned of flash floods. They have also been asked to keep away from banks of the flooded rivers.
Public Service Company of New Mexico said nearly 3,000 customers on Santa Fe’s south side were without electric power for more than two hours Friday evening after lightning struck the local power grid. Spokesman Frederick Bermudez said he couldn’t pinpoint where the lightning hit but said it knocked out power from 5:35 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. to 2,916 homes, businesses and institutions in an area bounded by St. Michael’s Drive on the north, Old Galisteo Road on the south, Old Pecos Trail on the east and Entrada de Santiago on the west. Much of Santa Fe was pounded by heavy rain with lightning and sudden high winds late Friday afternoon, suddenly swelling the Santa Fe River and other areas with swift flows of storm water. A driver on St. Michael’s Drive reported seeing thin funnel cloud on the horizon at about 5:45 p.m. “It was probably a dust devil, but we’ve been seeing that a lot this year,” said Brian Guyer, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albuquerque. “We’ve had some strong winds in Santa Fe today.” Guyer said the peak wind speed recorded at Santa Fe on Friday was 41 mph. Between two-tenths and four-tenths of an inch of rain fell — not a lot by most standards but what Guyer said was the heaviest rain the city has seen so far this summer. “You had a ton of lightning, some around the Plaza and a lot of lighting strikes up in the foothills,” he said. “It’s still dry, so it wouldn’t surprise me if we might see some fires by tomorrow.”
Hundreds of people residing near Beas river have been evacuated to safe places after flash flood caused by torrential rain over Dhundi peaks at south portal of Rohtang tunnel flooded the Seri rivulet, a tributary to Beas river, on Friday at 8pm. People living close to river between Palchan and Kullu are being evacuated and traffic on national highway has been stopped. Till last report received from Palchan (near Dhundi) at 10.30pm, level of the river was rising continuously and police were evacuating the people from Bahang village, 6km from Manali. According to police, there is no report of any casualty. Sandeep Kumar, a resident of Bahang village, said people are trying to save the household accessories amid chaotic atmosphere and conditions have become even worse after power failure. “Everything was normal till late evening but the situation changed suddenly after 8pm when river water, mixed with sludge, started engulfing its banks. People are risking their lives to remove the household stuffs,” he said. An engineer working with a hydel project near Palchan said over phone that roaring sound of river is shaking the foundation of the houses. “Nobody is going to sleep tonight. Villagers have gathered at many places and are guarding the river banks with floodlights,” he said. According to villagers it is a cloudburst which might have caused devastation at its source on mountains. Kullu deputy commissioner Amitabh Awasthi said , police are patrolling the river banks and have directed people to move to safe places. “We have closed the traffic on national highway. We shall keep an eye on the situation throughout the night,” he said.
FLOODS which hit parts of North Korea in the past few weeks have killed 169 people and left 400 missing, the state news agency announced on Saturday, sharply updating earlier casualty figures.
The floods and torrential rain between late June and the end of July also made 212,200 people homeless and washed away or inundated 65,280 hectares of cropland, the agency said.
United Nations agencies have visited the worst-hit areas to assess aid needs and the World Food Program (WFP) is sending an initial shipment of emergency food aid.
North Korea suffered a famine in the 1990s that killed hundreds of thousands and still struggles to feed its people even in normal times.
It had been estimated by UN agencies, even before the current deluge, that three million people would need food aid this year.
More than 8600 houses were destroyed and another 43,770 swamped, and more than 1400 schools, hospitals and factories collapsed, the news agency said.
Official media had previously reported 119 deaths, with 84,000 people made homeless and 45,370ha of farmland damaged.
The WFP said its initial assistance would provide victims with an initial ration of 400 grams of maize a day for 14 days, after the UN assessment mission found considerable damage to maize, soybean and rice fields.
The mission has said immediate food aid is needed for residents of the worst-hit counties such as Anju and Songchon in South Pyongan province and Chonnae in Kangwon province.
It also stressed that tens of thousands of families urgently need clean drinking water to prevent disease.
Wells had been contaminated by overflowing latrines, creating a high risk of a diarrhoea outbreak, while floods had damaged water sources and pumping stations.
Citing North Korean government figures, the UN mission said about 50,000 families would need purification tablets or other help to secure clean water.
The UN children’s fund UNICEF has ordered 10 million tablets along with other materials. Drugs and IV fluids were also badly needed.
The assessment mission said on Thursday a hospital in Chonnae county had already seen a fourfold rise in diarrhoea cases.
“In general, unless … needs are addressed, rapid increase in diarrhoea, skin infection and respiratory infections could occur,” it said in a report.
Outdated and inefficient agricultural practices, along with a shortage of fertiliser and diversion of food to the military, have contributed to the annual food shortages.
Mountainous North Korea is also short of arable land. Widespread deforestation, partly to clear land for crops, has made the impoverished nation increasingly prone to serious flooding which ends up washing away the harvest.
In February, the US reached a deal to offer North Korea 240,000 tonnes of food in return for a freeze on nuclear and missile tests.
But the plan was scrapped after Pyongyang’s failed rocket launch in April, seen by the US and its allies as an attempted ballistic missile test.
At least 10 people admitted to the Sukraraj Tropical and Disease Control Hospital in Nepali capital Kathmandu have tested positive for cholera. The hospital laboratory said Vibrio Cholera belonging to 01 Ogawa stereotype was detected in all the patients. Doctors at hospital attributed the spread of cholera and diarrhea infection in Kathmandu to contaminated water, according to Saturday’s Republica daily. “Most of the patients who came to the hospital said that they had drunk water supplied by Kathmandu Upatyaka Kahanepani Limited without boiling or treatment,” Tulsha Adhikari, a nursing staff said. She said whole families had been infected and some were brought to the hospital by their neighbors as all family members were sick.
Biohazard name:
Cholera
Biohazard level:
2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:
Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Five children in South Waziristan have died from measles during the past week, an official said. “Non-availability of measles vaccines has become a big problem and if the desired vaccines were not made available, the situation could slip out of hand,” Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan, agency surgeon, told Central Asia Online August 3. Measles has affected about 400 children, of whom about 100 were hospitalised, he said. He warned of an outbreak throughout the agency if medics failed to immunise children immediately. Letters regarding the unavailability of measles vaccine have gone to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) directorate of health, he said, expressing hope the vaccine would become available in a few days. The Taliban have refused to allow polio vaccination in areas of South Waziristan they control, endangering more than 157,000 children below age 5, he said. The directorate has received the agency surgeon’s letter and is sending vaccines to South Waziristan, FATA Health Director Dr. Fawad Khan said. “We have also started vaccination in Mohmand, Bajaur and Khyber agencies, where measles had killed several children besides sending hundreds to hospitals,” he said.
Biohazard name:
Measles (fatal)
Biohazard level:
3/4 Hight
Biohazard desc.:
Bacteria and viruses that can cause severe to fatal disease in humans, but for which vaccines or other treatments exist, such as anthrax, West Nile virus, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, SARS virus, variola virus (smallpox), tuberculosis, typhus, Rift Valley fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, yellow fever, and malaria. Among parasites Plasmodium falciparum, which causes Malaria, and Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes trypanosomiasis, also come under this level.
MessageToEagle.com – Two of three key signs of changes expected to occur at the boundary of interstellar space have changed faster than at any other time in the last seven years, according to new data from NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft.
For the last seven years, Voyager 1 has been exploring the outer layer of the bubble of charged particles the sun blows around itself.
In one day, on July 28, data from Voyager 1′s cosmic ray instrument showed the level of high-energy cosmic rays originating from outside our solar system jumped by five percent.
During the last half of that same day, the level of lower-energy particles originating from inside our solar system dropped by half.
However, in three days, the levels had recovered to near their previous levels.
A third key sign is the direction of the magnetic field, and scientists are eagerly analyzing the data to see whether that has, indeed, changed direction.
Scientists expect that all three of these signs will have changed when Voyager 1 has crossed into interstellar space.
A preliminary analysis of the latest magnetic field data is expected to be available in the next month.
“These are thrilling times for the Voyager team as we try to understand the quickening pace of changes as Voyager 1 approaches the edge of interstellar space,” said Edward Stone, the Voyager project scientist based at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif.
“We are certainly in a new region at the edge of the solar system where things are changing rapidly. But we are not yet able to say that Voyager 1 has entered interstellar space.”
Click on image to enlargeVoyagers in the HeliosheathThis artist’s concept shows NASA’s two Voyager spacecraft exploring a turbulent region of space known as the heliosheath, the outer shell of the bubble of charged particles around our sun. After more than 33 years of travel, the two Voyager spacecraft will soon reach interstellar space, which is the space between stars.
Our sun gives off a stream of charged particles that form a bubble around our solar system known as the heliosphere. The solar wind travels at supersonic speeds until it crosses a shockwave called the termination shock. That part of our solar system is shown in dark blue. Voyager 1 crossed the termination shock in December 2004 and Voyager 2 did so in August 2007.
Beyond the termination shock is the heliosheath, shown in gray, where the solar wind dramatically slows down and heats up. Outside those two areas is territory dominated by the interstellar wind, which is blowing from the left in this image. As the interstellar wind approaches the heliosphere, a bow shock forms, indicated by the bright arc.
The Voyagers were built by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., which continues to operate both spacecraft. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. The Voyager missions are a part of the NASA Heliophysics System Observatory, sponsored by the Heliophysics Division of the Science Mission Directorate. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Click on image to enlargeBubbles and Cosmic Rays at the Edge of the Solar SystemThe latest data from the Voyager spacecraft indicate the edge of our solar system is much different from what was previously imagined. This resulted in a new computer model that shows the edge of our solar system is not smooth, but filled with a turbulent sea of magnetic bubbles.
The heliospheric boundaries are very important in shielding the inner solar system from the galactic cosmic ray flux. The heliopause, the last region that separates us from the rest of the galaxy, acts more like a membrane that is permeable to galactic cosmic rays than a shield that deflects those energetic particles.
The galactic cosmic rays slowly wander into the heliosphere and can get trapped in the sea of magnetic bubbles. Eventually they access the solar magnetic field lines that connect back to the sun, and can move quickly towards the sun and Earth. Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/CI Lab
The levels of high-energy cosmic ray particles have been increasing for years, but more slowly than they are now.
The last jump — of five percent — took one week in May. The levels of lower-energy particles from inside our solar system have been slowly decreasing for the last two years. Scientists expect that the lower-energy particles will drop close to zero when Voyager 1 finally crosses into interstellar space.
“The increase and the decrease are sharper than we’ve seen before, but that’s also what we said about the May data,” Stone said.
“The data are changing in ways that we didn’t expect, but Voyager has always surprised us with new discoveries.”
Voyager 1, which launched on Sept. 5, 1977, is 11 billion miles (18 billion kilometers) from the sun.
Voyager 2, which launched on Aug. 20, 1977, is close behind, at 9.3 billion miles (15 billion kilometers) from the sun.
“Our two veteran Voyager spacecraft are hale and healthy as they near the 35th anniversary of their launch,” said Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager based at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena.
“We know they will cross into interstellar space. It’s just a question of when.” MessageToEagle.com
TEN secondary school teachers at the weekend died of food poisoning, and several others hospitalised in Katsina. Investigations by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) showed that the incident occurred at a workshop organised by the state Ministry of Education for some 650 teachers at Government Day Secondary School (GDSS), Kofar Yan’daka, Katsina. It was gathered that soon after taking their lunch, supplied by a popular corporate caterer on the fateful day, some of the teachers were vomiting and afflicted by diarrhoea, as a result of which they were rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Katsina and the Police Clinic for medication. Ten of the affected teachers were said to have died as a result of the infection. When contacted, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Alhaji Khalil Musa, said: “I cannot comment on the issue now, because it is yet to be reported to the state government. I don’t want to pre-empt the government on the issue.” The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Abubakar Ibrahim, who confirmed the incident, said that only one teacher died, while 19 others were hospitalised. He said that 12 of the affected teachers had already been discharged from the hospitals, while seven others were still on admission at the Federal Medical Centre and Katsina Police Clinic. He said the police had already collected sample of the food supplied by the caterer for clinical analysis. All the victims are receiving treatment at various medical centres, while officials declined to comment on the number of casualties that were brought to the centres.
Biohazard name:
Mass. Food Poisoning
Biohazard level:
2/4 Medium
Biohazard desc.:
Bacteria and viruses that cause only mild disease to humans, or are difficult to contract via aerosol in a lab setting, such as hepatitis A, B, and C, influenza A, Lyme disease, salmonella, mumps, measles, scrapie, dengue fever, and HIV. “Routine diagnostic work with clinical specimens can be done safely at Biosafety Level 2, using Biosafety Level 2 practices and procedures. Research work (including co-cultivation, virus replication studies, or manipulations involving concentrated virus) can be done in a BSL-2 (P2) facility, using BSL-3 practices and procedures. Virus production activities, including virus concentrations, require a BSL-3 (P3) facility and use of BSL-3 practices and procedures”, see Recommended Biosafety Levels for Infectious Agents.
Agro-pastoralists farmers in Loima District in Turkana County have suffered huge losses on their farms from massive locust invasion in the region. The farmers at Kang’ilita Irrigation Schemes in Loima district have decried the invasion as a major setback to their economic sustainability despite their recent devoted engagements into farming. They said raised fear of low crop yields in the coming harvesting season as a result of the unprecedented invasion. Ms Pauline Nakali, a farmer, said that her farm has been extensively damaged by the locust pest and could hardly think of ways to regain the loss. “We are experiencing big loss of crops to locust invasion and that we expect low yield this season since our farms have been destroyed by the pest,” Ms Nakali said. She appealed to the government and donor partners to intervene and salvage the situation before it goes out of hand. But the Rift Valley Director of Agriculture Leonard Nyambuya told farmers that the Ministry of Agriculture and the development partner Food Agriculture Organizations (FAO) would send experts to tackle the pest. Mr Nyambuya said the ministry and the donor partner will provide insecticide to fight the pest. He said experts from the directorate of crop and pest in the ministry will supply appropriate chemicals and insecticides to get rid of the pests. “We are immediately sending the experts to assess the damage caused by the pest before we swing to action to eradicate it,” Nyambuya said. The director who addressed farmers’ field schools in Kangilita irrigation scheme directed the Field extension officers to assess the damage caused by the pest. The FAO officials Dr Paul Omanga said his organisation would assist the farmers to fight the prevailing pest problems in the area so that farmers achieve good yields.
Biohazard name:
Locust Invasion
Biohazard level:
0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:
This does not included biological hazard category.
Large numbers of jellyfish have been swarming near nine thermal power plants on Ise Bay. Chubu Electric Power Co. estimates that there are close to 24,000 tons of the sea creatures swimming around the area, twice the usual level and the second-most recorded in the past decade. Measures are being taken to ensure the jellyfish don’t clog the power plants’ water intakes and disrupt their operations. Chubu Electric launched a research project in 1999 to predict the number of jellyfish in Ise Bay. They discovered that most jellyfish larvae transform into polyps in three major areas: near the port of Nagoya; along the coast of the Chita Peninsula from Tokoname to Morozaki, Minamichita, in Aichi Prefecture; and along the coast of the Shima Peninsula from Matsusaka to Toba in Mie Prefecture. Every winter, the research group collects samples of polyps and compares them with past results to predict how many larvae will develop into adult jellyfish in the following year. Last winter’s findings indicated the number this year would be 1.5 to 1.8 times higher than usual. “We don’t know the reason why the number is so high this year, but we need to monitor the situation closely,” said Minoru Hamada, 46, an assistant project manager in Chubu Electric’s technology development department.
If jellyfish block the water intake, a power plant can’t draw enough water from the sea to cool the steam used to turn the turbine, and the plant has to reduce its electricity output. Each plant has adopted various measures, including putting up nets, to stop the jellyfish from swimming too close, but this is only effective when dealing with small numbers. It is not enough to prevent large amounts of jellyfish from swimming in all at once. The number of jellyfish near the thermal power plants usually peaks in July, August and September. However, this year they started gathering around the plants in May, resulting in reduced electricity output at three of the plants for a total of nine days. They were the Hekinan plant in Hekinan, Aichi Prefecture, the Shin-Nagoya plant in Nagoya and the Kawagoe plant in Kawagoe, Mie Prefecture. It’s a pressing problem for Chubu Electric because it has become increasingly dependent on thermal energy since its Hamaoka nuclear plant has been shut down over quake and tsunami fears. “The effect of the jellyfish isn’t fully known yet, but it can have a serious impact on electricity output if they keep increasing, especially during this season when there is high electricity demand,” a Chubu Electric official said. “We need to monitor the jellyfish further and take actions swiftly if necessary.”
Biohazard name:
Jellyfish invasion
Biohazard level:
0/4 —
Biohazard desc.:
This does not included biological hazard category.
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Fruit flies can give clues to what happens in other species
MessageToEagle.com – Two of three key signs of changes expected to occur at the boundary of interstellar space have changed faster than at any other time in the last seven years, according to new data from NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft.
